By Mike Petraglia | Comments Off on Isaiah Thomas: ‘Just hope we get a few more pieces. I think that’s what we need’

ROXBURY — Whether it’s Kevin Durant, Al Horford or Dwight Howard, Isaiah Thomas is just hoping Danny Ainge can work his magic to improve his team’s chances of getting past the first round and contend for a title.

“I just hope we get a few more pieces. I think that’s what we need,” Thomas said Thursday while speaking to kids on a Celtics CommUNITY stop at the Roxbury YMCA.

“I think that would be the next steps for us, and then we go from there. I’ve got a lot of trust in Danny and those guys in the front office because that’s their job, that’s what they do. And they know what they’re getting themselves into. So I’m just trying to do my part with telling people how special Boston is. And then hopefully they listen.”

“I don’t know if you can say anything to convince him. He’s his own man,” said Thomas. “I don’t know if he even has his own decision already and he just wants to hear people out. But we just have to be as real as possible. He’s a fan of the game. He knows the game of basketball. He’s talked to me about how exciting it is to watch us on NBA LeaguePass and things like that. So he knows. And we’re just going to do what we can to try to seal the deal. And hopefully we can get in his ear. And maybe he’s a Celtic. Maybe he’s not. But we’re going to try. And I’m going to try.”

Thomas left the YMCA to head back to Waltham to meet with Danny Ainge and the Celtics to see if he could be of any further assistance in a last-ditch effort.

“It’s a crazy feeling just because years ago that didn’t even come close,” Thomas said. “I was worried about making the team the next year. So it’s a good feeling knowing that they I guess trust my word or anything, and they come to me for things that they need or they want me to do. Knowing that you have trust in the organization, that’s a great feeling.”

By Logan Mullen | Comments Off on Isaiah Thomas on OM&F details what he would say to Kevin Durant to get forward to join Celtics

Isaiah Thomas

Celtics point guard Isaiah Thomas joined Glenn Ordway and Lou Merloni Thursday afternoon to discuss Kevin Durant and being a part of the Celtics organization. For the full interview, visit the OMF audio on demand page.

With the Celtics reportedly meeting with Kevin Durant Saturday, Thomas was unsure if he was going to be a part of it, but is ready if called upon.

“I’m going to call Danny today and see what he needs me to do, but if that’s what he wants me to do I’ll be there,” said Thomas.

Despite 48 wins and a first-round playoff exit, when asked how he would pitch the Celtics to Durant, Thomas had very much thought through what he would say.

“48 wins without a so-called superstar I guess they say, in the best city in the NBA, the best fans in the NBA, the history of Boston is self-explanatory,” Thomas said. “… If I am in that meeting on Saturday or whatever day it is, or I’m able to talk to Kevin Durant face-to-face I’ll just be as real as I possibly can and tell him how I feel about Boston. How I felt Boston before I got before I got here and how I feel about it now and that’s all I can really do. In this predicament in this situation everybody is going to try to sell him the world, or sell any free agent the world, and my job is just as a player to keep it as real as possible and try to get him to a great city and get situation and try to get him to Boston to where with him or with any other superstar we can give us that muscle to raise the 18th banner.”

A week removed from the NBA draft, Thomas expressed the utmost faith in the organization’s decision making.

“[Jaylen Brown is] a talented basketball player, somebody that I think will help us,” Thomas said. “I know Danny and the guys in the front office have done their background checks on all the guys that they worked out. So I guess they thought that was the best fit for us as a team. I’ve got all faith in the front office in the Celtics organization and Danny Ainge and what they’re doing because they’ve been through it, that’s their job. And they know the in’s and out’s of the draft and free agency and all those types of things. My job is just to go out there and play. But I’m excited, hopefully Jaylen Brown is ready to contribute and ready to get to work. I’m excited about the future and hopefully we can get a few free agents this summer and build on what we have.”

Following are more highlights from the conversation. For more Celtics news, visit the team page at weei.com/celtics

“I don’t think it would take anything from Reggie because his number is still hanging up in the Garden,” she told O’Connor. “If I see Durant running up and down the court with the No. 35, I don’t know how my emotions would be until it happens.

“I don’t think I would be upset about it. I think it would be a good thing, because he is a very nice, humble young man. I don’t know a lot about him, but I know of some of the things he has achieved while wearing the No. 35.”

The similarities between the two players are obvious, O’Connor notes, with both Lewis and Durant lanky scorers who could shoot over the top or dunk at the rim. Lewis was just entering the prime of his career when he collapsed and died in July of 1993 at age 27 while shooting baskets at Brandeis.

Durant is an All-Star and former MVP who has the Celtics on his list of six teams that he’ll meet during free agency.

Add Lewis’s retired number to the list of enticements the Celtics could potentially offer to get him in green.

By Mike Petraglia | Comments Off on Marcus Smart: ‘I’m ecstatic to remain a Boston Celtic. I love Boston [and] I love their fans’

WALTHAM – There was one person very happy that the Celtics didn’t pull off a trade last Thursday night during draft night.

As one of the youngest and most talented defensive guards in the NBA, Marcus Smart was at the center of many trade rumors involving the Celtics. He knew there was a possibility that he might be dealt away as the Celtics tried to move out of the No. 3 spot and get a proven impact scorer.

As it turned out, the Celtics and Danny Ainge didn’t pull the trigger, leaving Smart to continue his plans for another season in Celtic green.

“I’m ecstatic to remain a Boston Celtic,” Smart beamed Tuesday at his youth basketball camp at Brandeis. “I love Boston. I love their fans. I love the organization and everything about it.”

There was also something else that didn’t happen Thursday that played to the apparent advantage of Smart. The Celtics didn’t draft another defensive-minded guard. They chose Jaylen Brown over Kris Dunn.

“That was weird because Danny being a defensive-minded guy, so you kind of would’ve thought that was where he was going,” Smart said. “We were excited for whoever we got and we are excited with the picks that Danny has picked, and the front office and we’re ready to go.”

Smart, like Isaiah Thomas, has started to make his pitch for Kevin Durant. But there are other areas that could be addressed with as much as $62 million of cap space to play with.

Speaking at his summer basketball camp at Red Auerbach Court at Brandeis Tuesday, Marcus Smart said it would be amazing for the Celtics to add the top name in free agency to their roster.

“Oh, no doubt. I think any team would love to see Durant and those type of caliber players on their team,” Smart said. “But we’re not the ones that make that call, so we just kind of sit back and wait. And whatever decisions that the front office makes, we’re ready to run with it.”

Durant would be a franchise-changer for the Celtics. To add a 7-footer of Durant’s caliber on the wing, their offense would taken on a different dimension and they would shoot the Celtics to the top of the NBA food chain, immediately making them top contenders in the East.

“It’s incredible. A guy his size to do what he does, it’s unreal,” Smart said.

Knowing all of this, Smart, like Thomas, is hoping and praying that Durant gives Boston serious consideration. Would he recruit Durant to Boston?

“If I get his number,” said Smart.

Smart played at Oklahoma State, practically in Durant’s backyard.

“I watched Durant growing up, even when I was at Oklahoma State,” Smart said. “He came to like a game or two and I talked to him. Not a whole lot, but he’s a great guy you can definitely tell.”

The Celtics are on the short list of six teams who have scheduled meetings with Roc Nation Sports, the agency that represents Durant. The Spurs, Warriors, Clippers, Heat and Thunder will all be meeting with Durant. Free agency officially begins Friday.

Remember the pursuit of Manny Ramirez? How about the ill-fated chase for Alex Rodriguez? Think back when Zdeno Chara was on the market in 2006. The Patriots and Darrelle Revis married for one season, and it yielded New England’s fourth Super Bowl title.

Well, the Celtics’ dream of putting Kevin Durant in green next season has the potential of eclipsing all of those in terms of media focus and civic involvement.

Danny Ainge knows, just from their reaction to the lack of trade on draft night, that the entire fan base is in a frenzy. The Celtics are in full-in mode to get their guy who could change the fortunes of the franchise for the next decade.

This is like the summer of 2007. They not only brought in Ray Allen on draft night in the trade for the draft pick that netted Jeff Green, they got Kevin Garnett in a trade at the end of July. There is the draft. There are trades and then there’s free agency. All three factor in Ainge’s roster building.

This summer could be similar to ’07 as Kevin Durant and Kevin Love are potentially on the radar (that is, if Durant wants Love). Roc Nation Sports, Durant’s agency, is not only calling the shots on Durant’s deal, they are sending the message that Durant wants a full supporting cast around him that will immediately compete for his first NBA ring.

The Celtics have a lot going in their favor. They have tradition, a red-hot young coaching talent, loads of cap space and something L.A., Golden State, Miami, San Antonio and Oklahoma City don’t have. Civic pride and brotherhood among the pro sports teams. That’s why Rob Gronkowski, Bill Belichick and David Ortiz showing up courtside really matter. The Celtics should give Gronk, Belichick, Ortiz and even Tom Brady a call to reach out to Durant. Isaiah Thomas continued this effort on Saturday.

At $27.685 million committed to salaries for next season, the Celtics are in remarkably good shape to attack free agency. They not only are a young team coming off back-to-back playoff seasons, they have more cap space than any team that made the playoffs in last season. As a matter of fact, only the Sixers and Lakers, the two worst teams in the NBA last season, have less money committed to salary for the 2016-17 season.

By Mike Petraglia | Comments Off on Isaiah Thomas plans to support push for Kevin Durant by pushing his shoes

The Kevin Durant “KD 9” shoe was released by Nike on June 20. (NIKE)

Isaiah Thomas is not taking no for an answer.

The Celtics dynamic and personable point guard took to Twitter Saturday to continue his marketing effort to sell Kevin Durant on why he should come to Boston.

In a tweet, Thomas indicated he was ready to go out and get a new pair of shoes, “I need me a pair of those new @KDTrey5. They look comfortable lol”

The Nike “KD 9” basketball shoes go for roughly $150. The new shoe was released by Nike on June 20.

This, of course, is not the first time Thomas has taken to social media to woo the would-be free agent. Just an hour after the Warriors eliminated Durant and the Thunder in Game 7 of the Western finals on May 30, Thomas tweeted a picture of a Shamrock with the number ’35’ next to it.

Durant would not be able to wear that number with the Celtics, as it has been retired to honor the late Reggie Lewis. Thomas, perhaps realizing this, removed the tweet later that night.

Thomas had no need to remove Saturday tweet, as it is just the latest effort in a growing move to recruit Durant to Boston. The superstar has agreed, through his agency Roc Nation Sports, to meet with the Celtics and five other teams (Golden State, Oklahoma City, San Antonio, L.A. Clippers and Miami) before choosing his final destination.

A week after his Shamrock tweet, Thomas said he would be “all-in” in an effort to bring his friend to Boston.

Thomas is hardly alone among Boston athletes who would love to see Durant in Celtic green. Hartford native and lifelong Celtics fan Terrance Knighton took time after a Patriots practice in mini-camp to express a desire to reach out to Durant.